NATURAL GAS

The Biden Administration announced a crackdown on methane emissions, a major driver of climate change. Major oil and gas companies also signed on to a voluntary net-zero commitment.

Critics say the bills could lead to untold billions in added costs to customers and minimal benefits while ignoring needed efforts to reduce electricity demand.

Atmos, a major natural gas provider for the state, apologized for last week’s service disruption that left some Texans without heat during freezing weather.

Freeport LNG has released details on what led to a fire at the liquefaction plant on Quintana Island in early June.

After last winter’s near-statewide electric blackouts, Texas lawmakers went after regulators they deemed responsible but tiptoed around the Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates oil and gas. Now voters have a chance, if they want it, to send the state a message.

In the state’s power grid, electricity and natural gas are co-dependent. Here’s how the winter storm last year broke the system.

Gov. Greg Abbott said he could not guarantee power would stay on throughout Texas this week, just two months after he promised the lights would stay on this winter.

The new development ends the immediate threat that up to 400,000 customers could lose power, but the underlying financial dispute between two energy giants stemming from last February's winter storm remains unresolved.

Vistra Corp. asked the Railroad Commission of Texas to prevent Energy Transfer LP from cutting off fuel to five of its power plants on Monday. Vistra said the power supply to at least 400,000 homes and businesses could be impacted.

Local energy experts predict that Texas natural gas consumers should likely expert an increase in their energy bills next year as state leadership and the Railroad Commission of Texas have recently approved measures to allow eight major natural gas providers to recoup $3.4 billion in significant losses due to the storm.

Have you looked at your natural gas bill this month? KPRC2 Investigates looks into why some natural gas customers are suddenly being hit with higher bills. What's going on and how you can fight back.

HOUSTON – After two days and two hearings, Texas state senators and representatives will begin deciding how to reform the embattled Electric Reliability Council of Texas, ERCOT, which manages the flow of electricity across our state. Magness testified ERCOT is asking each of the 185 power plants that went down during the storm to provide specific reasons for the outages. Nye testified his list did include natural gas facilities, but he learned during the storm his list was not the most current. Garland Power and Light COO Tom Hancock told state senators the company invested in a robust winterization effort following the 2011 winter storm that caused similar problems in Texas. Hancock said as a result none of the natural gas facilities in their territory went offline.

HOUSTON – Some CenterPoint Energy customers contacted KPRC 2 on Thursday and said they had received a bill for more than $200,000. Everyone who contacted KPRC 2 said they received a bill for the same amount -- $202,102,16. In a statement, CenterPoint officials said the power outages caused a technical issue that generated incorrect bill notification emails that were sent to about 27,000 Houston-area customers. “Customers who received an e-mail notification showing an amount due of $202,102.16 for natural gas, should disregard and not pay it as they don’t owe this amount,” officials said in the statement. Officials said the error was only made in the email notification and it was not a billing error.